Derrick Lake and other current or soon-to-be veterans take part in a Reboot workshop. The aim is to help people identify their passions and find fulfilling work. K.C. Alfred • U-T

But they are fighting a 9 percent national unemployment rate — 12 percent in California — and a flood of fresh civilians as the military cuts its numbers after the peak of two wars. At 9.8 percent in August, unemployment among young veterans is higher than the national average.

Facing those obstacles, a year-old nonprofit group in San Diego is testing a novel approach.

“When you join the military, you are by-gosh programmed to be successful in the military,” Froman said. “And the military is very proud of its training. But when you leave the military, nobody ever reprograms you to be successful in the civilian world.”

Froman has a reputation as a problem-solver. She commanded the Navy’s Southwest Region in the late 1990s, then helped restore faith in the San Diego American Red Cross chapter after a 2002 financial scandal. Later, she did a tour as San Diego’s chief operating officer during Mayor Jerry Sanders’ first term in 2006.

“It’s not about putting dribbles of money here and there. That’s blowing in the wind. Getting veterans jobs will help a few, but there’s a gap here,” she said.

The three-week Reboot course is rooted in concepts from a Seattle-based management institute and the work of two psychology experts. The aim is to help people identify their passions and think about how to find fulfilling work related to those interests.

Participants in the course, including Bernal, said it helps them realize what opportunities might be out there in the civilian world.

What Bernal learned during the Reboot seminar: Helping junior sailors is what he liked most about his time in the Navy. He plans to attend college and study business management or psychology.

Neftaly Rosariodiaz is another Reboot participant forced out of the Navy because of cutbacks.

When he entered the class, the 32-year-old figured that he would get a job in aviation maintenance — what he did in the Navy. At that point, he said, he was like a horse with blinders on. Now he intends to get a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and maybe do something more creative, like research and development.